<DIV><p>"For a translator to be faithful and readable, as Mr. Merwin always is, is no small achievement."?<I>The New York Times</I></p><p>"From Latin to Russian to Japanese, translator [W.S. Merwin]'s oeuvre suggests an intrepid quality as well as a scrutinizing sympathy."?<I>Boston Review</I></p><p>This is the first complete bilingual (Japanese/English) translation of the <I>Buson Kushu,</I> a comprehensive collection of the haiku of Yosa Buson (1716?83). Buson's haiku brim with paradox: they are bawdy yet delicate, sparse yet powerful. W.S. Merwin and Takako Lento worked for a decade to co-translate these poems into English-language versions as luminous as the original Japanese. An essential volume of world literature.</p><p><B>"187"</B></p><p><I>keisei wa<BR>nochi no yo kakete<BR>hanami kana</I></p><p><I>Courtesans come out<BR>to see the cherry blossoms<BR>as though they were betting on their next life</I></p><p><B>Yosa Buson</B> (1716?1783) was one of the great poets of Japan's Edo period. His work is technically adroit and finely attuned to visual details. A true maverick of interdisciplinary arts, Buson was also founder of the <I>haiga</I>?a small watercolor or black-and-white painting bordered by a haiku.</p><p><B>W.S. Merwin</B> was US Poet Laureate from 2010?11 and won his second Pulitzer Prize for <I>The Shadow of Sirius </I>(Copper Canyon Press, 2009) and the National Book Award for <I>Migration: New and Selected Poems </I>(Copper Canyon Press, 2005). He lives in Hawaii and France.</p><p>Co-translator <B>Takako Lento </B>holds an MFA in poetry and translation from the Iowa Writers' Workshop.</p><BR></DIV>